Frozen Tears
by KnowledgeandImagination
Summary: Out of all the reasons that he had expected, he didn't expect this. He had expected hate, anger, or some sort of grudge. He never expected him to have forgotten completely. A random thing written after episode 238.


Umm …this is a random thing I wrote while waiting for episode 239. It's sort of how I thought that the fight would break out. I swear I wrote this before I saw the episode! I may have changed some wordings after seeing it, but other than that, it was my take on it. Random, I know. And I know I should have been working on my other stories, but I couldn't resist!

* * *

Turquoise eyes locked with ice blue. The tall man and small boy faced each other, both still and unmoving.

The boy's eyes were hard and cold, like chips of ice, but the man had no trouble reading the emotions there.

Anger. Pain. Betrayal.

They had always been together. They had fought through so many battles, and flew so far together, and now, he had forgotten everything.

"Hyourinmaru…You're name is Hyourinmaru…You're my zanpakutou" the boy murmured with strain in his voice.

The man cocked his head. "Hyourinmaru… and you are my master?"

The boy measured him carefully before answering, "Yes. I am Hitsugaya Toushirou. I am your wielder, and master."

The man stared, unmoving. A little ways away, Ichigo also looked upon the scene in curiosity, temporarily forgetting the giant pillars of ice that still revolved him menacingly, threatening to crush him. He couldn't believe it.

When the dragons of ice had attacked him, he had noticed that there was something distinctively familiar about the attack. It tugged at his memory, but he couldn't place his finger on it.

And then, Toushirou appeared, and it all fell into place.

The man was Hyourinmaru. Hyourinmaru, the strongest zanpakutou of ice and water; the great ice dragon.

But then, why didn't he remember?

"You are my master? Do not be ridiculous. How can a small boy like you be my master?"

The boy bristled for a moment, then calmed himself. "I may look small, but I am _not _a mere 'small boy'"

"I see." The man was still for a second. And then, before anyone could react, he slashed the air with his sword. The reiatsu from the slash solidified into a giant dragon of ice and water. It flew right at the small captain, snapping its jaws menacingly.

The boy leapt back, allowing the dragon to crash head first into the rocky cliff that he had been standing on. The collision shattered great of pieces of the cliff, and sent rock raining over the area, coated with ice. In fact, the whole cliff was now coated with a thick layer of ice.

Toushirou landed gingerly upon the ice. Hyourinmaru looked at him, his eyes probing. "If you are really my master, then prove it to me."

Toushirou glared at the man. "You've really forgotten everything?"

"I forgot everything when I was separated from my master. My only wish is to find him. He must be a strong shinigami to wield me, not a child like you."

Toushirou's eyebrows knitted together in anger. "Then," he said softly, "I'll have to make you remember, make you see the truth."

But even as he said it, Toushirou made no move to attack. He still stood there, hands not even moving to draw his blade. The only sign that he gave of readying himself for battle was the almost indistinguishable tightening of his muscles and the slightest shifting of his footing.

Hyourinmaru looked at him as well. He mirrored Toushirou's moves, tensing his muscles ever so slightly, and shifting his footing almost inscrutably. Both were hovering on a tense edge, watching each other through hawk-like eyes, waiting for the other to make the first move.

Ichigo, though not in the best predicament, had to marvel at the two. Their movements, though there was barely any, were so well calculated, and he could practically see them strategizing, a hundred different ways to approach flying through their minds, even as their face remained unchanging.

Then at last, Toushirou made a move. There was nothing before it to indicate his attack. One moment, he was standing perfectly still, muscles tense. The next he was in the air over the tall man, his sword drawn, and slashing down.

The man moved, raising his blade to block it. Toushirou allowed the man's sword to lock with his own, and then pushed off of it, sailing through the air to land on a rock outcropping near Ichigo.

"Kurosaki, can't you break out of there?"

"No! Your damn zanpakutou made all these stupid columns that keep revolving around me and don't break! Can't you do anything?"

"No. I don't even have shikai. You better get out of there soon, or they'll crush you and trap you there for at least a thousand years."

"Oh, well, that's just raised my moral support!"

Toushirou ignored him as the dragon turned man flashed behind him, swinging his blade sideways at Toushirou's stomach. The captain dodged it, but the slash released super condensed reiatsu that morphed into water and ice that twisted into another dragon of ice. The dragon clamped its jaws on Toushirou and shot into the air with him.

"Toushirou!" Ichigo shouted. Toushirou frowned and gritted his teeth, watching as ice and water began to spread from where the teeth clamped into his body. Raising his zanpakutou, he brought it down onto the dragon's head with a violent release of reiatsu that broke the dragon apart just enough to push of the rest of the icy body and flip through the air, escaping it's jaws.

Hyourinmaru slashed the air again, and four more dragons shot out, each twisting at tremendous speeds through the air, circling around the young captain, leaving no room for escape.

The dragons crashed in upon the small boy, and it looked as if for a moment, the dragons had succeeded in their endeavor. But then, just before the water and ice of their bodies froze over completely, there was a cry of "Hadou 63, Soren Sokatsui!"

Ice shards flew in all directions. The blow did not completely shatter the dragons of ice, which began to reform as it was broken, but it gave Toushirou enough time to leap out of the fray. He landed on another outcropping and, panting slightly, glared at Hyourinmaru.

"Let me make one request," he said through forced calm.

"You are not in any position to make any requests," the man replied, raising his blade, the point glinting in the moonlight.

Toushirou didn't flinch. "Let the shinigami go," he said, jerking his head to where Ichigo was still trapped without taking his eyes off the man before him.

Hyourinmaru considered him for a second. Then he raised his hand. There was a blast of energy, and suddenly, the pillars of ice cracked and shattered, sending ice flying in all directions.

Ichigo stared, shocked written across his face, at the ice pillars.

"Leave here at once," Hyourinmaru said to him coldly. "Do not interfere."

Ichigo's mouth opened at once, and Toushirou could sense him about to retort, but he cut across him smoothly. "Leave Kurosaki. This is between me and him."

Ichigo turned his incredulous eyes to the boy. "What the hell Toushirou! Are you crazy? You don't even have your shikai, and that guy's dangerous! You may be good, but you're not that good. You'll never win alone!"

"That's Hitsugaya-taichou, Kurosaki. As I said, this is between me and him. If you interfere, then I won't hesitate to kill you, understand?"

Ichigo was about to snap back angrily. He never knew the boy to be so violent. Then he looked at the hardness of his eyes. They were locked on the spirit of his zanpakutou, hard and determined. He suddenly realized that Toushirou was fully aware of the possible outcome of this. But he then remembered something that Zangetsu had once hinted.

The bond between ones wielder and zanpakutou was a binding contract. The two were in perfect harmony. This fight, no matter how dangerous, was Toushirou's and Toushirou's alone. It would damage not only his pride and honor, but the bond between him and his zanpakutou if Ichigo interfered.

Gritting his teeth and narrowing his eyes, Ichigo tensed, and reluctantly readied himself to shunpo away. But before he left, he said to Toushirou, "you better not fail then, Toushirou."

Toushirou said nothing, but Ichigo knew that he had heard him. He left.

"Brave of you, to send your friend away, knowing full well that you are in no shape to combat me," Hyourinmaru said.

"As I said to Kurosaki, this is between you and me. If I can't defeat you alone, then I don't deserve you."

Hyourinmaru frowned. "Then, let us waste no more time."

* * *

Yeah, it was short. I originally thought up of a whole story of how things might work out, but now that ep 239 is out, well, I'll say that it will be weird. I'm still all hyped up because of it! Oh well, here's just something random, as I said. Please don't flame it! But reviews are welcome!

And for all readers to my other stories, I swear, I will work on those! Sorry I'm taking so long. Real life is in the way.


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